Between Levels Podcast

Sarthe is back from Gamescom for Episode 11 of Between Levels, joining WheelieAverage and FightinCowboy to talk about what he saw and played in Germany, including Tides of Annihilation and more.Then we dive into Onimusha: Way of the Sword. Cowboy has finished the game, Wheelie is near the end, and Sarthe has spent several hours with it. We discuss the combat, Issen system, difficulty, open areas, surprising humour, story and whether Capcom has delivered another must-play action game.We also go deep on The Blood of Dawnwalker. Wheelie and Sarthe have completed the game while Cowboy has started his first playthrough, leading to a huge discussion about its directional combat, vampire and human builds, witchcraft, the 30-day time system, genuine choice and consequence, multiple endings and how dramatically different two playthroughs can become.Plus, we update Fantasy Critic, predict review scores for Marvel’s Wolverine, Silent Hill: Townfall and Control Resonant, and finally choose the three winners of our Mortal Shell II Steam code giveaway.Our next giveaway will happen when Between Levels reaches 2,000 subscribers, when we’ll be giving away a PC copy of The Blood of Dawnwalker.Featuring WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe.

Sarthe is away at Gamescom this week, so TheMavShow joins WheelieAverage and FightinCowboy for Episode 10 of Between Levels!We’re breaking down our favourite reveals from Gamescom Opening Night Live, including The Witcher 3 remaster, Tides of Annihilation, Warlock, Fable and plenty more, along with some of the games that left us a little less convinced.Then Mav and Cowboy give their hands-on impressions of FromSoftware’s The Duskbloods, explaining how its unusual multiplayer structure works, what surprised them after actually playing it, and when we think Nintendo could release the game.Finally, Wheelie has played three hours of Marvel’s Wolverine and gives his full hands-on impressions. We talk combat, optional stealth, Logan’s rage and healing mechanics, the more linear approach to storytelling, costumes and interchangeable claws, Jean Grey, Team X and whether Insomniac has successfully translated its Spider-Man formula into a Wolverine game.Plus, we answer your community questions, discuss whether Insomniac’s Marvel games are taking too much time and attention away from original PlayStation IP such as Ratchet & Clank, and get an unexpected Fantasy Critic update as Cowboy and Wheelie’s battle at the top gets increasingly competitive.Featuring:WheelieAverageFightinCowboyTheMavShowCheck out TheMavShow:https://www.youtube.com/@TheMavShowFollow Between Levels:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BetweenLevelsPodcastX: @BtweenLevelsInstagram: @betweenlevelspodcastTikTok: @betweenlevelspodcast

The developers of Mortal Shell II join Between Levels! For Episode 9, WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe sit down with Mortal Shell II co-founders Vitaly Bulgarov, Andrew McLennan-Murray and Anthony for an in-depth conversation about the making of one of our favourite Soulslikes of 2026.We discuss the huge leap from the original Mortal Shell to Mortal Shell II, how Cold Symmetry’s creative process works, why a bug accidentally turned playing as a sheep into a full feature, the game’s original roguelite beginnings, Shell design, lore, memories, difficulty, community feedback and how player telemetry influences balancing decisions.The team also talks about the future of Mortal Shell II, including the possibility of expanding the existing world with new areas, Shells, weapons and more — and even gives us an interesting answer when FightinCowboy asks the all-important question: where is Solomon?We also have a deeper discussion about the Slayer Seal, achievements and accessibility, why Cold Symmetry prefers diegetic difficulty options, maintaining creative freedom as development budgets grow and what the team has learned from the response to Mortal Shell II.00:00 – Welcome to Between Levels Episode 900:47 – Meet the Mortal Shell 2 Developers02:46 – The Stress of Launching Mortal Shell 204:24 – How Cold Symmetry Came Together06:31 – Leaving AAA Behind & Building Games Differently10:16 – “We Have To”: How the Sheep Became a Feature12:17 – Mortal Shell Started as a Roguelite17:13 – Community Feedback, Balance & Telemetry25:28 – The Developers’ Favourite Shells31:06 – How Mortal Shell 2’s Shells Are Designed41:36 – Improving Mortal Shell 2’s Storytelling48:01 – Night Mode, Horror Areas & Missable Content52:42 – How the Lute Became a Weapon56:18 – Bigger Budgets vs Creative Freedom1:03:49 – Why Slayer Seal Disables Achievements1:08:39 – Why Mortal Shell 2 Doesn’t Have Difficulty Options1:10:21 – The Developers React to Mortal Shell 2’s Reception1:17:01 – Mortal Shell 2 Steam Code GiveawayWe’re giving away THREE Steam copies of Mortal Shell II!To enter, leave a comment telling us why you want to play Mortal Shell II and/or what you enjoyed most about this episode.This episode contains some light discussion of Mortal Shell II story, bosses and late-game content.Let us know what you think of Mortal Shell II and what you’d like to see from its post-launch future!Featuring:WheelieAverageFightinCowboySartheVitaly BulgarovAndrew McLennan-MurrayAnthonyFollow Between Levels:X: @BtweenLevelsInstagram: @betweenlevelspodcastTikTok: @betweenlevelspodcast

Mortal Shell II is finally here, and WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe are joined by Dom from Dom’s RoundTable for the first full Between Levels review roundtable.The four break down Mortal Shell II’s enormous evolution over the original, including its combat, Shell system, build diversity, exploration, bosses, lore, difficulty, performance and technical state.They also discuss how it compares to games like Elden Ring, Lies of P and Nioh 2, the best Shell for new players, some completely broken builds, whether the beta’s technical issues have been addressed and whether Mortal Shell II is ultimately worth your time and money.The opening section is spoiler-free before a clear warning marks the beginning of the spoiler discussion.Plus, the hosts answer questions submitted by the Between Levels community and reveal their final verdicts on Mortal Shell II.

Beast of Reincarnation has excellent combat, impressive traversal and plenty of promising ideas—but almost every strength comes with a frustrating catch.In Episode 7 of the Between Levels Podcast, WheelieAverage, FightinCowboy and Sarthe break down where Beast of Reincarnation succeeds, where it completely drops the ball and why its repetitive enemies, reused bosses, limited progression and disappointing final hours prevent it from becoming something special.The conversation also turns into a heated discussion about the current state of Pokémon, whether Palworld has become the Pokémon experience fans actually wanted and why Game Freak’s latest release left the hosts so disappointed.Elsewhere, the trio updates the Between Levels Fantasy Critic league, discusses Marvel’s Wolverine, GTA 6’s unusual Netflix showcase, the Gears of War: E-Day beta and the upcoming WheelieAverage versus FightinCowboy For Honor showdown.They also discuss the excellent Mortal Shell 2 beta, whether game demos should make a full comeback, 007 First Light, the current Game of the Year contenders, Capcom’s incredible year, Phantom Dust and some of the best community comments from Episode 6.Let us know in the comments: What OpenCritic score do you think Mortal Shell 2 will receive?Subscribe for a new episode of Between Levels every week.Hosted by:WheelieAverageFightinCowboySartheFollow Between Levels:X: @BtweenLevelsInstagram: @betweenlevelspodcastTikTok: @betweenlevelspodcast